Astros take first of four against Chicago
Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 3 hits from the 3-0 win
Back at home for ten games, the Astros looked to start the long homestand with a win over the White Sox to start their four-game series. Here's a recap of Monday night's game:
Final Score: Astros 3, White Sox 0
Record: 32-16, first in the AL West.
Winning pitcher: Brad Peacock (5-2, 3.59 ERA).
Losing pitcher: Ryan Burr (1-1, 3.86 ERA).
1) Peacock with five strong innings in win
Brad Peacock threw his third consecutive start with one run or less, holding the White Sox scoreless over five innings of work. He looked on track to go longer, but a long fifth inning ended his night early. Peacock's final line: 5 innings, 0 runs, 2 hits, 2 walks, and an impressive 9 strikeouts.
2) Bullpen tasked with four more innings
Despite Peacock having a strong outing, it was still only five innings, resulting in the bullpen being asked to cover four innings to close out the win. Chris Devenski pitched a scoreless sixth by working around a two-out single, then Will Harris worked around two two-out singles for a scoreless seventh.
Ryan Pressly took over in the eighth, and to no surprise provided yet another scoreless inning. In the ninth, Roberto Osuna converted his twelfth save of the season to complete the shutout.
3) Three runs is enough
With the White Sox held scoreless by Houston, the Astros didn't need much offense to get the job done on Monday night. Carlos Correa hit what would be the eventual winning run on a sac fly in the bottom of the first, putting Houston up 1-0. They added two insurance runs, both on solo homers, one by Jake Marisnick in the third and the other by Tyler White in the fourth, his first of the year.
Up Next: The Astros and White Sox will get game two of this series underway tomorrow night at 7:10 PM. Houston will have their ace, Justin Verlander (7-1, 2.38 ERA), on the mound to pitch opposite of Dylan Covey (0-2, 4.41 ERA) for Chicago.
The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.